"Nadine was my baby, she was such a beautiful and kind hearted girl. She would never hurt anyone, she just wanted to help people," she said on Monday.

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Media captionAndrea Aburas told a news conference her 'beautiful' daughter who would never hurt anyone

"She was a born healer for people... always putting others first. The loss of Nadine has torn my heart in two."

Detectives said the pair had known each other for three years and had met up previously in New York.

On 30 December they checked into the Future Inn, Cardiff Bay, within 30 minutes of each other and left shortly before 22:00 GMT but returned an hour later.

Five hours later, Mr Almahri left the hotel and is believed to have boarded a flight at 10:00 GMT from Heathrow to Doha, Qatar, before flying on to Tanzania.

At the news conference, Ms Aburas made a direct appeal to Mr Almahri: "I am asking you, as Nadine's mother, please hand yourself into the authorities and please help us find the answers that we need so we can let Nadine rest in peace.

"You told us that you loved Nadine, if that is true, please let the police help you."